CinderElena
by americanhoney139
Summary: Left with her cruel vampire step-family, Elena must try to survive day to day, with only the birds and the mice as her company. One day, the King announces a ball for all of the eligible maidens to wed the vampire prince. Her sisters will surly get him. Will Elena get the a chance to get prince of her dreams? Book 2 of Delena Princess Story
1. The Beginning

_Once upon a time in a faraway land, there was a tiny kingdom, peaceful, prosperous, and rich in romance and tradition. Here in a stately chateau, there lived a widowed gentleman and his little daughter, Elena. The young girl was full of magic and life, for she had been bestowed with the gift to speak to animals. Although he was a kind and devoted father, and gave his beloved child every luxury and comfort, still he felt she needed a mother's care. _

_And so he married again, choosing for his second wife a woman of good family with two daughters just Elena's age, by name, Katherine and Rebekah. It was upon the untimely death of this good man, however, that the stepmother's true nature was revealed. Cold, cruel, and bitterly jealous of Elena's charm and beauty, she was grimly determined to forward the interests of her own two awkward daughters._

_Thus, as time went by, the chateau fell into disrepair, for the family fortunes were squandered upon the vain and selfish stepsisters while the beautiful Elena was renamed Cinderella, for she was always covered in ash and cinders from tending the fire. She was abused, humiliated, and finally forced to become a servant in her own house. And yet, through it all, Elena remained ever gentle and kind, for with each dawn she found new hope that someday her dreams of happiness would come true._

* * *

It is morning and a small yellow bird flew up to the attic of the house where Elena lives. The bird slips in thru the window and lands on the sill. He began tugging the shades to the side and the light lands on the bed of the sleeping girl lying curled onto her side. Her brown hair is spread across the pillow in a halo around her head and her soft breathing and the slight twitch of her body is the only way the bird knows that she's alive. The bird first played with the long strands of chocolate brown hair and tweets for her to wake up but the girl turns on her side and buries her face further into the pillow. Determined to wake her up, the bird tiptoes underneath the pillow as she lets out a giggle. Startled, the bird perches on top of her pillow as she creeps her fingers up onto the pillow and startles it again. As it flies up to the girl's headboard, she laughs and sits up in bed.

"Do you mind?" she pretends to glare at the small bird but he tweets a good morning to her and she smiles. "I was having such a wonderful dream." The bird hops from foot to foot before flying to the windowsill to tell her it's a beautiful day. "I know the weather is going to be just as good as it was yesterday," she sighs, "but the dream I had was even better." She smiles and her eyes glaze over as she tries to remember her dream and she leans back in bed. The small yellow bird asks her what she was dreaming about and her smile gets even wider. "I can't tell you about it because if you tell someone what you wish for, it won't come true."

The clock tower begins to toll the time and she sighs, pulling back the covers. "Oh, that clock! Old killjoy," she shakes her head as she stands up and runs a hand thru her hair. "I hear you. 'Come on, get up,' you say, 'Time to start another day.'" She shakes her head as she picks up her brush and begins to pull it thru her hair. "Even he orders me around. Well, there's one thing. They can't order me to stop dreaming."

She begins to hum a happy tune as she starts to make her bed. The yellow bird is joined by a blue bird and together the two of them help her make her bed. Numerous mice come out of their holes in the wall to help her make her bed before she rushes to the small bathroom to clean herself off before starting her day. As she takes a cold shower, the mice take her nightgown from the counter and organize her day clothes. The two birds dust it off with their wings before she comes out with a smile on her face and a scratchy towel wrapped around her lithe body. Two mice polish her shoes and, when she comes back, she slips her tiny feet into the nicely polished black flats. The blue bird took one side of her apron and the yellow bird takes the other side and together they do a dance to tie the apron together. She sits at her vanity and brushes her straight brown hair back from her face. Suddenly, she hears the leader of the mice calling to her.

"Elena, Elena, come quick!" the male mouse calls her.

"What's the matter, Jeremy?" Elena asks, stooping down to the mouse's level.

"There's a new mouse in the house that we've never seen before," Jeremy explains, jumping up and down and waving his arms in the air.

"Oh, well, she'll need a dress and a—" Elena starts as she pulls out a small blue dress for their new visitor but is interrupted by Jeremy.

"No, no, no!" Jeremy shakes his head. Elena nods and pulls out a small shirt, shoes, and hat.

"There's no time for that!" Jeremy pulls on her shirtsleeve, "stepmother has him!"

"Well, why didn't you say so in the first place, Jer?" Elena gasps in horror as she runs from the room, Jeremy hanging onto her neck.

Elena runs down the stairs to see a mouse trapped in the corner of a room in one of the many mousetraps. "Calm down, we're here," she tells everyone as she kneels down to look at the mouse in the trap. "Look, the poor thing's trembling. Jer, can you talk to him?"

Jeremy nods and rushes over to the edge of the cage. The small brown mouse is a little smaller than most mice, but he shakes his head and makes the mouse look at him. "We're not going to hurt you… at least not us. We're going to like you here and Elena's," he points up to Elena and she smiles, "going to like you too. She's a very kind-hearted human." Jeremy holds out a hand for the mouse as Elena opens the trap with nimble fingers. "Come on, come say hi to everyone." He grabs the mouse's hand and guilds him out of the trap before Elena snaps it shut so that no one can get in. All of the mice and birds tweet and whistle to welcome the new mouse into their family. Elena smiles down at her makeshift family.

"Isn't that better?" the brunette asks as she dresses the small mouse in outfit she picked out for him before. "Now, do you have a name?"

"S-Stefan," the mouse stutters as he stares up in awe at the beautiful woman standing before him.

"Well, welcome to our little family, Stefan," Elena beams at him as she stands up. "I have to run, so keep Stefan out of trouble," she directs this order at Jeremy, who nods. "Don't forget to tell him about what those horrible vampires will do if they catch any of you." As Elena leaves, Stefan turns to Jeremy with worry written on his small face.

"What will they do if they catch us?" he asks, his voice shaking.

"They send us off to be test subjects for their witch's new dark magic spells," Jeremy shudders. "We had a mouse last year, Anna, and she… she…" He can't finish his sentence and Stefan puts a paw on his shoulder to show that he's heard all he needs to.

"I won't let it happen to me," he reassures the other mouse with a small smile.

**So this is the first chapter of the Delena Princess Books. Cinderella with a vampire/witch twist and Delena of course. Some of the ways I use the characters can be quite funny, especially Klaus and Caroline in Beauty & the Beast... Anyway, please don't forget to review and tell me how you like it. Next chapter we meet Elena's step-family.**

**Review and vote!  
**

**P.S. I'm gonna find dresses for all of the characters for the ball and Elena's wedding dress, but they won't be up until they are on their way to the ball. Something for you all to wait for!  
**


	2. Morning Blues

Elena tiptoes thru the door of the basement and up to the floor where her stepmother and stepsisters' bedchambers were. She can hear Rebekah's hideous snoring from her bedroom as she drew the curtains to let the light into the hallway. Then she goes downstairs to the kitchen to prepare the trays of tea for her evil family. The mice secretly follow her thru the many small passageways in the house. They meet her outside where she is visiting the farm animals.

"Hey guys," she smiles as she greets them, "where have you been?" She laughs when she sees Jeremy in the back dragging Stefan with him. "Here's breakfast!" She gathers a handful of corn from her apron and spreads it on the floor for the mice. Most of them got enough to feed themselves. However, Stefan, being the newest mouse in their family, can't get out of the way before the chickens peck at the left over corn and begin attacking the poor mouse.

"Leave him alone," Elena shoos away some of the fat birds. "Shoo! Shoo!" She pulls Stefan from the fray and sets him down a little ways away. "Oh, Stefan, here," she spreads out a few pieces of corn that will keep him fed for the next few days; "it's all yours." The rest of the mice had gone into the kitchen with Elena when the three bells on the wall start ringing like crazy. Scared, Stefan hides in one of the cups that is supposed to be served to the eldest stepdaughter.

"I'm coming!" Elena calls out as she places the teacups on the tray and went to get three bowls of oatmeal. She places them on the trays and continues to get the hot kettle and pours the water into the three teapots. She bites her lip as she tries to balance the three trays as she cautiously makes her way up the stairs. However, she loses her shoe on the staircase and she has to turn around to get it, making the vampires angry. Elena finally reaches the youngest stepsister's bedroom and opens the door.

"Morning, Katherine," she smiles sweetly, continuing to be optimistic. The dark purple room makes her shiver and she hates how none of the vampires ever open the curtains even though they can walk in the sun.

"Whatever, doppelgänger," Katherine snarls at her before pointing to a pile of clothes of the floor. "Take that ironing and have it back in an hour! One hour, you hear?"

"Yes, Katherine," Elena nods with a small sigh as she picks up the small bag of clothes in the hand that was carrying the tray before. She continues on to the eldest stepsister's room, which is painted a deep blood red color and makes her shiver again. "I'm here, Rebekah," she announces herself as she walks into the room.

"It's about time you got here, Elena," Rebekah snaps. "I hope you don't forget to mend these dresses for me!" she points to a laundry basket and waves her hand in a dismissive manner. "And don't take all day getting them done either."

"Of course, Rebekah," Elena left with Rebekah's dresses in her hand, a little more depressed with each room she passes. She reaches the end of the hallway, where her stepmother's room is and takes a deep breath before entering the room.

'Well, get in here, Elena!" Isobel orders here as she steps into the room. "Get the laundry done, and then get on with whatever chores the girls gave you."

"Right away, Isobel," Elena frowns, exiting the room with a bag of laundry on her head, the basket of Rebekah's clothes in one hand, and a bag of Katherine's in the other. She struggles to walk down the stairs to begin the grueling task of completing her endless lists of chores.

Suddenly, there is a scream from upstairs and the sound of dishes shattering. Rebekah runs out of her room screaming as Elena runs to see what all the fuss is about. "You did this!" Rebekah screeches at the brunette. "You put that _vermin_ under my under my cup on purpose!" Katherine wipes her eyes as she stumbles out of the room to glare at the meek double standing before her.

"What did you manage to mess up now?" Katherine asks Elena sharply, chasing after her frightened sister.

"That worthless waste of space put a mouse under my teacup!" She hears Rebekah whine to Isobel and instantly she fears for Stefan.

"I'm right here, Elena," a small voice whispers from the pocket of her apron, "I escaped." The brunette lets out a sigh of relief.

"Elena, get in here now!" Isobel shouts from her room making Elena rush into the room.

"You're _so_ gonna get it!" Rebekah laughs. "I hope she tears the hair right off of your head!" Her heart clenching painfully, Elena walks shamefully into the dark blue bedroom of her stepmother and shut the door behind her as Katherine and Rebekah bend down to try and eavesdrop on the conversation.

Elena stands with her back pressed against the door as Isobel's icy glare puts her in her place. "Get over here, you stupid girl!" she snaps at the brunette and Elena could do nothing but obey.

"Do you really think—?" Elena begins but Isobel's sharp tone causes her to stop.

"Shut your mouth!" Isobel shuts her up, fangs flashing and eyes blackening, small black veins fading in below her eyes. The brunette feels a shiver shoot down her spine. "It looks like we have time to waste…"

"I was only doing what I was told," Elena tries to explain herself, only to receive a powerful slap that makes her cry out in pain and fall to the floor.

"Do not open that mouth _again_ while I'm talking to you!" Isobel growls and continues. "…Time for—for practical jokes, maybe that time could be better spent in other ways." Isobel lifts Elena up by her throat and the girl chokes, clawing at the hands blocking her airways. "The cupboard in the hall needs to be cleaned, and the windows downstairs need to be washed, and the…"

"But I washed the curtains yesterday!" Elena protests around the chokehold. Isobel snarls again and presses her against the wall, only loosening her hold a tiny bit so that her 'bloodbag' doesn't die on her.

"You missed a lot of dust," Isobel hisses. "Then sweep the stairs and halls, and of course there are the chores Rebekah and Katherine gave you. I expect them all done today."

"Yes, Isobel," Elena hangs her head hopelessly.

* * *

Meanwhile, the King of Mysteria and his loyal adviser are discussing Prince Damon's duties as the next heir.

"Alaric," the King sighs, "my son has avoided his responsibilities as the prince of Mysteria long enough. It is time he found someone to be at his side when he becomes king, and of course to carry on the throne. As I with him."

"But you have to be patient with the young man," Alaric replies. Damon is his best friend and he _knows_ that Damon doesn't want to get married and have kids… ever.

"I am patient," Giuseppe snaps, "but I'm not getting any younger, and all I want is to see my son happily settled down. It's hard to see your only child grow older and older." He sighs again and shakes his head. "This palace is going to be his someday. I want him to be prepared."

"What if we just let him make his own decisions," Alaric suggests, knowing Damon will hate his father even more than he does if the old man forces him into anything.

"Let him make his own decisions!" Giuseppe repeated in surprise. "What a ridiculous idea!"

"But in the matter of romance…" Alaric tries. He knows all about romance since he's currently engaged to the palace Housekeeper, which Damon has arranged behind his father's back. Although he loathed to admit it, Damon _was_ romantic in his own right.

"Romance, right," Giuseppe shrugged sarcastically, "just a man meeting a woman under specific circumstances." He gestures between the two of them. "We are just arranging those circumstances."

"But what if Damon suspects anything?" Alaric asks.

"He's coming home from the conference with the Mainland today, isn't he?"

"Yes, but…"

"So what's more natural than a welcome home ball?" Giuseppe looks absolutely delighted by the idea while Alaric cringes. "And all of the eligible women in Mysteria just happen to be there. He's bound to find interest in one of them."

"Yes, your highness," Alaric nods his head, conceding to the idea.

"There'll be dim lights, romantic music, everything nice!" Giuseppe cheered with a small smile.

"I'll start planning for…" Alaric begins, thinking of how he and Jenna can pull it off.

"Tonight!" the king answers.

"Tonight?" Alaric repeats, paling.

"Yes," Giuseppe nods, "and see to it that every eligible woman in Mysteria is in attendance. Got it?!"

"Of course, sire," Alaric gives him a bow before backing out of the room and hurrying down the hallway to his fiancé.

**So sorry this took so long! Forgive me. I was hopping this story would have more reviews by the time I added the second chapter, but I guess not. Please review so that I have a motivation for getting the chapters out faster!**


	3. The Invitation

Elena struggles thru her menial tasks, cursing the stronger vampires she has to live with. Already weak from being drained this morning and fed only one drop of vampire blood on each wound, she isn't feeling as strong as usual. There are two raised bite marks on each of her wrists along with one on her neck. Bite mark scars litter her body and she just wishes they would drain her already.

She struggles as she wipes down the front hallway, the cloth rough against her skin. Since this morning, she hasn't seen Stefan or Jeremy and she hopes that they're okay. She dips the cloth back into the bucket and wipes it across the already glimmering floor. A hum travels across the room as she begins to sing softly to herself, "A dream is a wish your heart makes when you're fast asleep." She sighs and sits back on her heels. "In dreams you lose your heartaches, whatever you wish for, you keep," she continues as she does her work, cringing when the water hits her bites. "Have faith in your dreams and someday, your rainbow will come smiling thru."

She stands up and spins around, ignoring the fact that she can be punished if her stepfamily ever found out about her love of dancing and singing. "No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you wish will come true." She finishes just as a letter slips thru the small mail slot in the door. She blinks down at the letter and, seeing the royal seal on the back, her heart flutters. Stefan and Jeremy climb out of one of their little hidey-holes to jump up and down at her side.

"What does it say?" they ask; "What does it say?"

"I don't know," she tells them, putting the mop aside and wiping off her dress as if she can get rid of the filth clinging to her like a second skin. "I'm not going to open it before Isobel does. You know what will happen if I do." Jeremy nods and shudders. Stefan just tilts his head to the side in confusion, but doesn't ask. "Let's go see what it says." She heads upstairs to where Rebekah and Katherine are practicing their 'artistic talent'. Isobel is keeping track of her daughters' notes.

"Oh, sing sweet nightingale, sing sweet nightingale, hi-i-i-i-i..." Rebekah sings. She hits the high note, but Katherine's finger gets caught in the flute. They are standing so close together that the flute smacks against Rebekah's chin. As Katherine struggles to get her finger out of the flute, it continues to hit her sister under her chin, making her stutter out the line. "...i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i..." Rebekah rips the flute from her sister's hand. "You clumsy..." she hits Katherine over the head with the flute and it bends, "You did it on purpose!"

Katherine takes back her flute and hits the other girl over the head with it. "You're always...

"Girls. Girls," Isobel tries to stop them from squabbling, but Katherine just turns and points at her sister.

"It's her fault, Mother," she whines.

"Above all, self-control," Isobel rubs her temple, already feeling a headache coming on. Elena bites her lip, knowing that her stepmother already knows she is there. She knocks on the door anyway. The older vampire angrily slams her hands down on the keys, shattering a few of them. "What do you want?" she snaps harshly at the shy human standing at the door, "I told you never to interrupt the girls'—"

"I know," Elena's voice is almost a whisper, "but a letter just arrived from the palace."

"That palace!" Rebekah and Katherine shriek. "Give me that!" Both of them lunge for the letter faster than they can move and the three of them tumble to the ground. Elena cries out in pain as one of them bites her arm in an attempt to get her to let go of the letter. Isobel sighs before pulling the young weakly out from under them, plucking the letter from her hand with a sigh of disgust at the single drop of blood on it.

"A ball is being held at the Mysterian Royal palace, tonight," Isobel informs them as she quickly reads and rereads the letter. "And, by royal command, every eligible maiden is to attend."

"Why, that's us!" Rebekah's face breaks out into an ugly smile.

"And I'm so eligible!" Katherine almost swoons at the thought of dancing with the prince.

"Why," Elena blinks as a small smile hesitantly creeps its way across her visage, "that means I can go, too."

Rebekah cackles at the thought. "Hah! Her, dancing with the Prince," she says this as if the young brunette isn't even in the room. Isobel smiles at her daughters, pride shining in her eyes.

"I'd be honored, Your Highness," Katherine fakes a bow and Rebekah giggles, taking on the part of the prince. She holds the bent flute out to her sister. "Would you mind holding my broom? Ha Ha!" The two young vampires break out into a fit of snorts and giggles.

Isobel steps in with a cruel smirk on her face. "Well, I see no reason why you can't go..." she trails off and her lips curls up into a snarl at the smile on Elena's face, "if you get all your work done."

"Oh, I will. I promise," her eyes are sparkling with hope and it makes Isobel's stomach turn in disgust.

"And, if you can find something suitable to wear." Rebekah and Katherine are looking at her as if she's finally lost her head.

" I'm sure I can," she nods, already panning the dress in her mind. "Oh, thank you, Stepmother." She rushes out of the room to tell her little animal friends.

"Mother," Rebekah cries as she turns to her mother, "do you realize what you just said?"

"Of course," her smirk gets even bigger, "I said, "If."

* * *

Up in Elena's bedroom, she manages to find an old truck containing a soft lavender gown. She pulls it out and slips it onto a mannequin that she found in the attic. "It looks a bit out of fashion," the head female mouse, Caroline says as she tilts her head to the side. She's the fashion guru in the house and used to sneak out of the house to go to Fashion Street when she could.

"Yes, well it is a bit old," Elena nods and runs her hands along the lining of the dress, "you see, it was my mother's." She smiles as she walks around the mannequin to a small desk near her bed. "I'll be able to fix it up."

"How are you going to do that?" Stefan asks, climbing on top of a nearby book. Elena smiles and pulls out a sketch she's had forever and shows it to the mice. Caroline looks on from her shoulder and nods.

"I'll need to shorten the sleeves first," she thinks out loud, "and I'll need a few fabric materials and maybe some lace—" she begins to sketch over her picture of the dress, a small smile on her face as she concentrates. Suddenly, she hears Isobel's calling for her downstairs. She sighs and puts the drawing down and walks slowly down the stairs. They can hear her singing on the way down.

"Poor Elena," Jeremy watches sadly as the young woman, who had taken care of all of them, struggle with her day to day life. "Every time she'd find a minute, that's the time that they begin it. They just want to keep her busy. Let's face it, she won't be able to go to the ball." He stops his foot.

"What?" a chorus of cries goes up around him as the rest of the mice argue.

"You'll see; they'll keep her so busy she won't get her dress finished in time."

"I have an idea!" Caroline pipes up as she comes to stand beside Jeremy. "Why don't we make the dress for her? You know, as thanks for taking care of us." She shakes her head. "The poor girl's always working and making sure we're okay that she never gets any time for herself. This is her chance."

"That's a great idea, Care!" Jeremy reaches out and hugs the other mouse.

"Well, let's get to work," Anna, another female mouse, smiles as she helps Caroline pull out all the materials as Jeremy went over the things they need for the dress with Stefan.

"We'll begin up here," Caroline points to the top of the dress. "You two get everything we need from downstairs." She hugs each of them. "Just be careful." They nod and Jeremy pushes open a passageway down to one of the downstairs rooms in the house.

As the two mice reach an opening in the wall, they hear Rebekah and Katherine shouting and tossing article after article of clothing into Elena's arms.

"Don't forget there!" Rebekah threw a red silk gown at her.

"And my slippers as well," Katherine adds, handing her a pair of midnight purple high heels.

"Once you've finished those, I have a few extra things for you before you continue your regular chores, Elena," Isobel says with a smirk on her face.

"Of course, Mistress," Elena lowers her head and turns to leave the room.

"Why is it that everyone else has nice things to wear, and all I get are hand-me-downs!" Rebekah snarls; "This sash is garbage!" She threw a beautiful silk sash to the ground.

"And I am sick and tired of these beads!" Katherine yells, doing the same with a beautiful set of silver beads. "I don't care what happens to them!" The two sisters left the room and the mice squeeze thru the hole in the wall to where the sash is.

"Oh, this is so soft," Stefan whispers to his friend as he pulls at the sash. "Elena will love it."

"We have to be careful, Stef," Jeremy warns, "we don't want to get caught."

They both roll themselves up in the sash and roll back to the hole in the wall. Once the sash is stuffed inside the wall, they go back to get the beads. Stefan runs toward the beads and wraps them around his small body before he runs back to the small hole. Jeremy rolls his eyes when the necklace snaps and Stefan trips over a bead. Together they pick up the beads and hop back into the hole before being seen.

**Here's the third chapter of the story! It will get better but this might not be as good as Leonora. In this story, however, vampires can procreate. That isn't true in the show, but in this universe it is. Please review!**


	4. Going to the Ball?

Once back in Elena's room, all of the mice begin measuring the new fabric that Jeremy and Stefan brought in. Anna makes dotted lines in the sash so that Jeremy and Stefan can cut where the lines are.

"I'll cut it with the scissors!" Stefan smiles as he wraps his arms around one eye of the scissor.

"And I can do the sewing!" Jeremy nods.

"Leave the sewing to the women," Caroline smacks both male mice over the head, "you go get some trimming." Both boys sulk but nod and get to work.

The birds, also friends of Elena, fly the sash up to the waist of the dress and place the piece of sash there with a safety pin. Caroline begins to sow the materials together with an old pin and thread from a ratty apron. One of the birds flies Anna up to the neckline so that she can measure how big it is. Vicki, another female mouse, pulls out some lace and a yellow bird flies back up toward the neck of the dress. The rest of the mice pack a shoe full of spools of thread and use a pulley system to bring the shoe up to the top half of the dress.

Caroline, Anna, Vicki and Abby all help sow the lace on the neckline with the delivered threads. Two more birds wrap a nice purple ribbon around the waistline and tie it in the front with a big bow. All the mice hustle and bustle to finish Elena's dress. They cheer when they realize that she will be the prettiest one at the ball.

* * *

It is now eight at night and the clock tower is calling out. Everyone in Mysteria begins to head toward the royal palace for the ball. At Elena's quaint house, the carriage arrives to take Isobel, Rebekah, and Katherine to the palace. Elena is looking out the window as she notices the horses approaching. She leaves the window sadly to let her stepmother and stepsisters know that their ride is ready. Elena knocks on the door of the girls' rooms where they are preparing. She is expecting to be yelled at again and that's exactly what she finds.

"What is it, Elena?" Isobel hisses as she flashes her fangs at the weak human. "Can't you see we're busy?" Small black veins crawl down her skin and Elena shivers in fear. They'd already had 'dinner'; she had the scars on her wrists to prove it, but she just looks down in fear of another scar.

"Your carriage is here," Elena says the words in a fearful whisper.

"Oh," Isobel nods and her daughters finish pinning up curls and wisps of blond hair. Katherine is wrapped in beautiful light purple silk dress with high heeled boots. Rebekah is dressed in a dark blood number that shows off a good amount of cleavage. Isobel has dressed herself in a long midnight purple gown with a slash down the right side that ends mid-thigh. "Elena, you're not ready."

"I suppose… I'm not going after all," Elena sighs sadly.

"Well, isn't that a pity," Isobel smiles, hiding every bit of sarcasm in her voice. Katherine and Rebekah peek their heads out of the door. "There will be another time."

"Yes," Elena nods sadly. "Have a good time." And with that, the heartbroken human heads up to her bedroom in the attic of what used to be her own house.

* * *

Elena looks back into the dark, down toward where she knows Isobel is waiting for the right time to get into the limo and go to the ball. She walks toward her window and leans her head on her hands as she looks out at the brightly lit kingdom and the beautiful white castle in the distance. It seems so far away.

"Oh, well. What's a royal ball?" she places her cheek on her hand. "After all, I suppose it would be frightfully dull, and-and-and boring, and-and completely... Completely wonderful.."

Suddenly, the lights in her room flick on and she turns to see the two birds opening her closet. She gasps when she sees the dress on the mannequin that the mice had spent the whole afternoon working on.

"Wow," Elena puts her hand to her heart as she feels a tear slip down her cheek. "It's the dress I didn't have time to make for myself."

"Surprise!" the mice cheer and the birds tweet as they fly around the excited brunette as she slips the dress off of the wooden holder.

"Happy birthday!" Stefan cheers, a huge smile on his face.

"It's not Elena's birthday," Jeremy shakes his head. Elena laughs and hugs each of her little friends before slipping into the dress.

"Thank you so much everyone!" She can't stop smiling. "How can I ever ask for anything else? You guys are the best friends anyone could ever want."

Isobel, Rebekah, and Katherine walk as gracefully as they possibly can down the stairs to the main entrance of their house. Once they reach the door, Isobel turns to her two clumsy daughters. "Now, when you are introduced to the Prince of Mysteria, make sure you—" Isobel begins, but is interrupted by Elena calling from upstairs.

"Wait for me!" she calls down. 'Please wait!" She picks up the skirt of her light blue halter floor-length gown. Her hair is pulled up and pinned back, but falls in soft curls around her shoulder and down her back. Caroline and the other female mice had fixed her hair up for her and the light makeup she has is enough to make her look naturally beautiful. "Isn't it just beautiful? Do you think it's enough?" She rambles off in an exited manner. Stefan, Jeremy, and Caroline peek out behind cracks in the wall to see what the witches have to say about Elena's dress.

When Katherine and Rebekah notice that Elena has actually managed to procure a dress for the ball but Isobel holds up a hand to quiet them. "Girls, please." The two young vampires quiet down. " After all, we did make a bargain, didn't we, Elena?" There's a cruel smirk on her face as she scans the dress. Her eyes twinkle maliciously when she notices her daughters' discarded items on Elena's dress. "And I never go back on my word." She pulls gently on the beads at Elena's throat. "Hmm. How very clever. These beads. They give it just the right touch. Don't you think so, Katherine?"

The brunette looks at the dress and a snarl curls her lip. "No, I don't. I think she's..." She gasps and launches herself at Elena, digging her sharp nails into soft skin. "Why, you little thief!" Drops of blood stain the neckline of the dress as Katherine rips the beads off of her neck with force. "They're my beads. Give them here."

"Oh, no!" Elena cries as she puts her hand to her neck where the scars of nails are.

"Oh, and look," Elena watches in horror as Rebekah walks toward her like the predator she is. Dark veins crawl under her eyes and the brunette shakes in fear. "That's my sash. Wearing my sash, she can't."

For the next few minutes, the two sisters proceed to destroy Elena's dress completely. Blood and tears mix together as they scratch and claw to get thru material. The human brunette is shaking horribly as she stands there, frozen in terror. "Girls, girls. That's quite enough," Isobel stops them when they're getting down to the bare bones of the dress. "Hurry along, now, both of you. I won't have you upsetting yourselves." She ushers her daughters to the door, a smirk covering her face. "Good night," she says pleasantly and Elena stands there shivering.

Elena breaks down once she hears the car pull away; her once great optimism is shattered by her stepfamilies' cruelty. She puts a hand to her cheek as she runs out of the back door toward the garden. It's lit with small fairy lights and the rock path scratches her feet up and a small trail of blood follows her. Jeremy and his friends watch Elena run to the garden and they follow her, planning to just be there for her with all the support they can possibly give.

**So here's the next installment of CinderElena. The dress that she has on at first is the dress from her Miss Mystic Falls debut and the second dress, which will be coming up in the next chapter, is the dress from The Mikaelson's Ball. Please review so we can see who is the Fairy Godmother... although in this story Elena is her first assignment after graduating FG college.**


	5. Fairy Godmother's Help

All the mice and birds watch as Elena falls to her kneels and begins to cry, her tears and blood from small cuts on her cheeks and neck mixing together. Her face is pressed against the bench, where she and her father used to watch the stars and make up stories about the constellations. When she was little, Elena loved to make up backstory about each character and her father encouraged her to write them down in a journal. Elena misses her father so much and everything just seems to get worse and worse after he passed. He never wanted her to end a servant to evil vampires and he would never rest in in peace knowing his sweet daughter is being tortured in this way.

Everyone looks so sad watching Elena sob without a sign of stopping, and they all wish there was something they could do to help her. Jeremy pokes Stefan when he notices small balls of light coming together to form into a young brown skinned woman with kind eyes. Elena's head is in to the dark girl's lap. "Oh, no. No, it isn't true. It's just no use. No use at all," Elena sobs, her heart tearing itself apart. Sometimes she wishes her stepfamily would just drain her dry. "I can't believe. Not anymore. There's nothing left to believe in. Nothing." The unnamed young woman is dressed in a short white dress that flutters in the wind. Her hand gently caresses Elena's hair in a soothing way.

"Nothing, my dear?" the woman speaks. "Oh, now you don't really mean that."

"Oh, but I do..." Elena sniffles, her hand pressed to the cuts on her neck, reminding herself what she is.

"Nonsense, girl," the dark skinned woman shakes her head. "If you'd lost all your faith, I couldn't be here. And here I am." Elena looks up and gasps, her eyes wide with confusion. "Come on, dry your eyes, sweetheart," the woman speaks softly again, "you can't go to the ball looking like that."

"But I'm not going to—" Elena starts, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

The woman interrupts her. "Of course you are, but we have to hurry in order for you to get there on time." Dark brown eyes look kindly into Elena's own as she reaches out to pull the crying girl to her feet. She pats down her waist and searches her pockets as if she's looking for something. "What in the world did I do with that magic wand? I-I was sure I..."

"Magic wand?' Elena blinks. The woman looks more like a witch than a fairy godmother, but she's heard of some witches using wands to concentrate and aim magic better.

"That's strange. I-I always..." the woman's brows furrow as she looks around the garden.

"Why, then you must be..."

"Your Fairy Godmother?" the woman interrupts her. "Of course. The name's Bonnie. Now, where is that wand? I- Oh! I forgot. I put it away." She waves her hand in the air and a long thin wooden stick appears from thin air. Elena's eyes widen but she says nothing. "I'm pretty new at this whole fairy godmother thing—just got my license a few decades ago—but you'll see that I'm a pretty good one. Highest in my class." Bonnie smiles at Elena and giggles, a happy glitter to her eyes and Elena smiles back.

"Well, now that that's over with," Bonnie clears her throat, "the first thing you'll need is a pumpkin."

While Elena stands in stunned silence, the mice pull over a small pumpkin using all of their combined strength. "Why on earth would I need a pumpkin?" she asks but picks up the round squash the mice brought over. Bonnie says nothing but points her wand at the pumpkin and whispers some words. The pumpkin shudders before it magically transforms into a shining white carriage.

"Wow!" Caroline looks up at the carriage in awe.

"It's beautiful," Elena whispers, a small smile on her face.

"Next we'll need some… mice…" Bonnie nods her head, "yes, mice will do just nicely."

"Mice?" Elena looks wary as she glances down at her friends.

"Yes, dear, but tonight they'll be your escorts to the ball," Bonnie explains as she whispers more words in an unknown language and Jeremy turns into a human dressed in a nice suit and tie. "Weren't there two mice?" Bonnie asks herself before she notices Stefan hiding behind another pumpkin. "Oh, there he is." She turns Stefan into the man that opens the door for the carriage. Bonnie turns back to Elena with a smile. "Well, hop in my, dear. We can't waste time."

"But, uh..." Elena looks down at the ruins of her dress.

"Uh-uh, now, now, now, don't-don't try to thank me," Bonnie shakes her head and put a hand on Elena's shoulder.

"Oh, I wasn't... I mean, I do, but-but don't you think my dress..." Elena gestures to the rips and tears in her dress.

"Yes, it's lovely, dear, lov..." Bonnie looks down and nods before her eyes widen when she sees the actual state of her dress. "Good Heavens, child! You can't go in that.'

Elena giggles and Bonnie smiles. She waves her wand and Elena's dress is turned from tatters to a beautiful golden dress with a light layer of lace overlapping it. The top is in a black and gray corset style and sparkles when she moves. Delicate black gloves conceal her hands and she smiles as she feels delicate slippers on her feet.

"Why, it's like a dream. A wonderful dream come true." Elena spins around and the dress feels like silk against her skin.

"Yes, my child, but like all dreams, well, I'm afraid this can't last forever," Bonnie nods sadly. "You'll have only 'til midnight, and then..."

"Midnight? Oh, thank you." Elena reaches forward to hug Bonnie.

"Oh, now, now, now, now, now, just a minute. You must understand, my dear: On the stroke of twelve, the spell will be broken, and everything will be as it was before." Bonnie looks sad but Elena just beams at her and hugs the woman even tighter.

"Oh, I understand, but... it's more than I ever hoped for."

"It's getting late, you should hurry if you don't want to miss the ball!" Bonnie ushers the girl into the carriage and she watches with a smile as her charge rides off toward the Mysterian palace. Once the carriage is out of sight, Bonnie disappears with a pop.

**So this is a short chapter, and I'm sorry for that, but the next chapter is the ball. Remember, the dress in this scene is the one from the Original's Ball. Please review and tell me what you think!  
**


	6. The Ball

At the Mysterian Royal palace, the Welcome Home Ball for Prince Damon is well underway. The young women of every household are being announced one by one to come up and introduce themselves to the Prince. However, he only bowed, looking as bored as ever.

'_What I wouldn't give to be down on the archery range right now,_' Damon thinks to himself as he holds in a yawn. He'd rather be out shooting at targets or hunting with his faithful Irish Setter, Bessie, in the woods beyond the palace walls. He sighs and greets each guest.

Up in the balcony, King Giuseppe and Alaric are watching him, and the king is not impressed. "Ah! The boy isn't cooperating." His face is red with anger.

"Mademoiselle Leonora Mercedes de la Tour," calls a page from downstairs. "Daughter of Colonel and Madame de la Tour." Damon smiles at her but his eyes are focused elshwere.

"I can't understand it. There must be at least one who'd make a suitable wife!" Giuseppe hisses.

"Shh. Sire." Damon doesn't know of the plan to marry him off to one of the young ladies downstairs. They continue to watch.

Meanwhile, Elena has just entered the main palace and all of the guards are stunned by the young woman walking up the stairs to the ballroom. Everything is so big compared to her and it's so overwhelming, but she keeps her head high even as her insides twist together. Yet, however scared she is, she continues walking toward the ballroom with her head high.

Back in the ballroom, Katherine and Rebekah are being announced by the page. The two sisters stumble over their own feet while walking up the short stairs to Damon and he immediately dismisses them both.

Up on the balcony, the king and his advisor are watching with displeasure, the king more so than his advisor. "I give up," Giuseppe sighs and puts his head in his hand, "even I couldn't expect the boy to..."

"Well, if I may say so, Your Majesty, I did try to warn you," Alaric shakes his head, watching his best friend with a sympathetic look in his face, "but you, Sire, are incurably romantic." He chuckles softly.

"No doubt you saw the whole pretty picture in detail," Alaric stands up from his chair. "The young prince bowing to the assembly. Suddenly, he stops. He looks up. For lo... there she stands, the girl of his dreams. Who she is or whence she came, he knows not, nor does he care, for his heart tells him that here, here is the maid predestined to be his bride."

As Alaric is describing the events, the same events are happing on the ballroom floor. Damonstops suddenly and looks up to see Elena in the distance. He pushes Katherine and Rebekah out of the way and both huff as they follow his line of sight. Damon walks toward the skittish young maiden and takes her hand, offering to dance with her. Her chocolate brown eyes sparkle in the ballroom light.

"A pretty plot for fairy tales, Sir," Alaric is still speaking but the king has found the events below. "But in real life, oh, no. No, it was foredoomed to failure."

"Failure, eh?" Giuseppe laughs. "Take a look at _that_, you fool!" He points to Damon and Elena on the dance floor. "Who is she?" the king asks.

"I don't know," Alaric shrugs, "she didn't get an announcement."

"That's one advantage she has," King Giuseppe shakes his head, wishing to know the girl that has captured his son's heart. "Quick, dim the lights, begin to waltz!"

Damon notices that the lights have gone down and the waltz music begins to play so he looks to Elena nervously.

'_Great, my dad is trying to set me up,_' he thinks; '_Some welcome home party._' Without hesitation, although he can see it in _her_ eyes, he takes Elena by the hand, wrapping the other around her waist, and pulls her into a dance. Elena, on the other hand, is a nervous wreck on the inside but on the outside she is overjoyed by the fact that the man with handsome sapphire eyes has decided to dance with _her_ of all the beautiful maidens at the ball.

Upstairs, while the king turns in for the night, he orders Alaric to watch the dancing couple. With a groan, the Duke falls back into the king's chair and watches.

Back downstairs on the side of the dance floor, Isobel and her daughters watch as Elena and Damon dance on into the night with jealousy. Isobel hisses, her fangs slipping into place at her anger.

"Who is she?" Rebekah asks.

"Do we know her?" Katherine pipes up.

"Well, Prince Damon seems to know her," Rebekah answers her sister.

"I know I've never seen her before," Katherine shakes her head.

"I haven't either," Isobel speaks up, fangs in place. "But wait… there's something familiar about her." Isobel tries to follow the couple further from the ballroom but a curtain is pulled so that she cannot interfere with the young couple. Alaric, who had seen her actions, smiles as he nods to himself.

Prince Damon has suddenly stopped dancing once the curtain is drawn. He walks them further out into the garden before pulling away from Elena to sit down. She just stands there, confused, but she doesn't say anything.

* * *

"Finally, now my dad can't see me," Damon sighs as he sits down on one of the stone benches. "I hope you don't mind if we sit here for a while."

"No, of course not," Elena shakes her head and sits down on the bench next to him, brushing out the skirt of her dress. She's still reeling from the fact that she is here, in the garden of the palace with a handsome young man. It's all a dream come true. Suddenly, a loud barking noise interrupts her musing as a small bundle of fur rushes out of the nearest hedge to barrel into Damon's leg. Her long red fur shimmers in the moonlight and her hazel eyes sparkle with childish abandon. The raven haired man chuckles as he picks up the bundle and puts her on his lap, not caring about her suit. Elena smiles but stays silent, not knowing what to do.

"This is Bessie," Damon introduces the dog. "She doesn't really like people." Bessie squirms in his arms and he lets her go as she shoots right for Elena, licking her face. "Well, I guess she likes you."

Elena giggles and Damon falls in love with her bell-like laugh. He watches her as she interacts with his most prized possession. Suddenly, she growls and the dog yips back. This goes on for some times.

While Damon watches, Elena begins to speak to Bessie. '_Hello, Bessie, my name is Elena,_' she rubs her nose against the dog's and breaths out through her nose, allowing the dog to smell her scent. Bessie does the same and she laughs. '_Your house is very nice._'

'_My master is nice enough to let me stay,_' Bessie seems to nod her doggy head. '_He found me on the street and took me in. His father was not happy and he threw me into the pound. Master found me and brought me back._' Elena looks up and beams at a confused Damon.

"That was nice of you to save her, Damon," Elena smiles as she scratches behind Bessie's ear. "I can't believe your father would put her in the pound!" Elena has always been an animal activist. Being able to talk to animals helped her learn their stories and she is able to share their grief. She nuzzle into Bessie's fur and exhales.

"How did you know that?' Damon asks in wonder. This girl sitting in front of him is not like most girls he's met before. She doesn't seem to care about the fact that her dress is getting dirty or covered in fur and her hair is becoming messy because Bessie keeps tugging on it. She just seems to care about the dog in her arms.

"Oh," Elena blushes. No one knows about her special ability to speak to animals. Not even her stepfamily knew. She brushes Bessie's fur, wondering how to answer, as she brushes her hair behind her ear with one hand, unconsciously uncovering the bite marks on her neck. She jumps when Damon brushes a hand over her skin, worry and concern in his eyes.

"Will you answer my question, beautiful maiden?" his voice is soft and velvety, making Elena shiver.

"Um, I have the ability to speak to animals," she admits, looking down at her lap. Now he'll surely think she is strange and go back inside to find a more amusing young woman. "Bessie told me." Elena gestures to the dog. "She's really grateful for what you've done for her. She loves you a lot." She hands the small dog back to Damon and stands up, ready to flee when he grabs her arm, making her jump at the pain in her wrist.

"Why do you have all these bite marks?" Damon asks, noticing the vampire bite marks on her delicate wrist.

"Oh, um," Elena sits back down and wraps her hand around his on her wrist. "My stepsister and stepmother are vampires… I'm their blood bag, I guess." She shrugs as if it is no big deal, but concern still shines in his eyes.

"Why do you stay?" he asks, pulling her closer to him.

"Because I have nowhere else to go," she admits as she shakes her head sadly.

"Well, I could give you a place to stay," he offers. She blushes and looks down at their intertwined hands as Bessie barks happily. She wants the young maiden to stay.

"How?" Elena breaths.

"I am one of someone in the Prince's court," Damon speaks but for some reason he does not tell her his identity. He's afraid she'll be scared of him because the Prince is a vampire and she's been fearful of his kind for a long time.

'_Don't worry, miss,_' Bessie reassures her as she licks her face, '_Master is very kind. He will help you._'

"Thank you, Bessie, but I must go," she hands the Irish Setter back to Damon and goes to walk away when he reaches out to take her hand in his. He stands before her with a determined look on his face.

"I can get you away from their cruelty," he tells her softly. "It is against the law to use humans as slaves or blood bags. Does she compel you?"

Elena shakes her head. "She doesn't have to." She says nothing else.

He tilts her chin up with a finger and cups her face, looking at her with such a tenderness she's never know before that it makes her want to cry. "I'm going to help you, _la mia bellissima ragazza_," He doesn't say what it means, but she blushes all the same.

"Thank you so much, sir," she whispers, her breath on his face. "You don't know how much this means to me." She hasn't been this overjoyed in so long and a tear slips down her cheek. He wipes it off with the soft pad of his thumb. It seems that someone—Bonnie, the mice, her father—is looking out for her, knowing this moment would come.

"No need to thank me," he smiles at her and she thinks it's the most beautiful thing she's ever seen besides his eyes. "The future king needs to know all about what goes on in his kingdom and it includes the mistreatment of humans. I shall tell him myself!" He cups her face in both of his hands and she can't help but stare at his mouth. It looks so soft and warm; salmon pink lips just calling to her and she can feel her heart beating faster by the minute. "Oh, and call me Damon… my friends do." He's not going to tell her that his only friends are two workers in the palace. She blinks, surprised that he's telling her to call by his nickname.

'Are you sure?" she whispers, heart fluttering. "I mean, you are the Prince of Mysteria and I am just a lowly peasant."

"I'm positive." His eyes are like sparkling sapphires in the moonlight. "When the Prince becomes King, he believes that everyone should be treated equal, and you'll be able to be known as my friend when he does."

His words make her heart soar.

* * *

Elena is so caught up with the conversation she is having with the Prince's advisor that she barely notices the clock chime midnight. She doesn't want this night to end but to her disappointed even dreams have to end. "Oh no," she gasps, looking up at the handsome man she has just met. "it's midnight."

"Yes, so it is," Damon looks up at the clock tower before turning back to her. "But, why..."

"Goodbye," she whispers sadly, pulling out of his arms and turning around to walk away. She's almost to the ballroom when he grabs her arm.

"No, no, wait. You can't go now. It's only..." His eyes shine with worry that he will lose this beautiful maiden in front of him.

"Oh, I must, please," she pulls her hand away and picks up her skirt so she can run faster. "Please, I must!"

"But, why?' he asks softly.

"Well, I-I, oh, the Prince," she uses the excuse. She shakes her head and nods. It will suffice. "I haven't met the Prince."

"The Prince?" Damon's head tilts to the side, confusion swirling in his sapphire orbs. "But, didn't you know that..."

"Wait, you can't go now!" he cries as she hurries away from him. Bessie barks up at him as if to say 'well, go after her!' but he's frozen. He calls after her before he finds his feet and races after her, not using his vamp speed because it might scare her.

Alaric hears him and rushes after them. He follows the girl down the stairs to the entrance, where she is calling for her carriage. Damon gets swarmed by the other ladies of the court and he tells Alaric to run after her.

"Mademoiselle! Señorita!" Alaric shouts as he sees her step down to get into her carriage. He stops when he sees something glimmer beside his foot. He picks up a crystal clear glass high heel. It has an insignia of EG on the bottom and he shouts after her. "Just a moment!" But she gets in the carriage anyway and the diver makes the horses speed up as the young maiden races away.

As soon as they reach the forest that separates her home from the palace, there is a bright flash of light and everything changes back to the way it one. The pumpkin is smashed and with it goes Elena's dreams. Jeremy and Stefan rush over to her, pulling on her dress.

"I'm sorry. I-I guess I forgot about everything, even the time, but..." she sobs, tears falling from her eyes, "but it was so wonderful. And he was so handsome, and when we danced..." She shakes her head and puts a hand on her cheek. "Oh, I'm sure that even the Prince himself couldn't have been more... more... Oh, well, it-it's over, and..."

"Elena. Look! Look!" Jeremy points to something. "A slipper. Your slipper."

"Yeah," Stefan nods, "a slipper." Both of them go on about the glass slipper still on her foot.

"Oh!" she gasps as she pulls off the slipper and clutches it to her chest. She looks up at the sky, hoping Bonnie can see her. "Thank you. Thank you so much for everything." She holds her only memento of the ball to her chest as she walks home, one mice on each shoulder.

Damon sits on the staircase, holding the glass slipper Alaric managed to get. He sighs and shakes his head. Alaric comes back inside the palace and sits beside him. "No luck," he puts a hand on Damon's arm. "The girl is gone without a trace, as if she didn't exist in the first place."

"Well, do something!" Damon shouts as he stands up in anger. "I have to find her. I promised I save her!"

"From what, Damon?" Alaric asks.

"Her stepsister and stepmother have been using her for a blood bag for a long time," he tells the Duke. "They don't have to compel her to do anything because she has nowhere else to go." He looks down at the sad puppy with her head in his lap. "She can talk to animals, Ric. She spoke to Bessie."

Alaric shakes his head. "I'll go tell your father then." He leaves the room to go look for Giuseppe while Damon just pulls Bessie into his arms sadly.

**Poor Damon! I changed this scene around a little bit and I thought the dog was cute. Please don't forget to review and vote because _Beauty & the Beast_ and _Hercules_ are tied for second after _The Little Mermaid_! Oh, and her dress is Elena's dress at the Original's Ball. But her slippers are glass with her initials carved onto the bottom.**


	7. Finding His Mystery Lady

The very next day, a proclamation was set up outside the Mysterian Palace. Everyone stopped to look at with curious eyes. It stated that Alaric, the Grand Duke, and an unnamed page, would come to every residency in Mysteria and ask every young maiden in the household to try on the slipper. There was also mention of a secret test that was not to be named. Whoever could fit into the slipper and pass the secret test would be taken to the palace to see Prince Damon and hopefully be the one he spent time with at the ball.

It is early morning at Elena's house and Isobel is already awake. She had heard about the news from her neighbors. She's walking up the main stairs, looking for the small human brunette. "Elena! Elena! Elena! Oh, where is that..." she shouts furiously.

"Yes? Here I am." Elena answers from the kitchen.

"My daughters- where are they?" Isobel asks, her eyes alight with scary flames.

"Uh," Elena bites her lip and closes her eyes, thinking hard. "I think they're still in bed."

"Well, don't just stand there," Isobel growls, flashing her fangs at the human. "Bring up the breakfast trays at once, and hurry!" The older vampire stomps up the stairs to wake her daughters while Elena nervously turns back into the kitchen to fix breakfast for her stepsisters.

"What's the matter with her?" Stefan asks. The mice are hiding beside Elena's feet before she had returned to the kitchen.

"I don't know," Jeremy shrugs. "Let's find out." So the two mice snuck into one of their many passageways.

Upstairs, Isobel begins waking up her two daughters, opening up the curtains in Rebekah's room so that the sun shone brightly. "Rebekah? Rebekah."

"Mmm? What?" Rebekah rolls over in bed and puts a pillow over her head.

"Get up. Quick, this instant. We haven't a moment to lose," Isobel hisses before she goes into Katherine's room and does the same. "Katherine? Katherine. Get up, Katherine."

"Huh? What for? Why?" Katherine sits up in bed and rubs her eyes, glaring at her mother through the sunlight.

"Oh, everyone's talking about it. The whole kingdom. Oh, hurry now. He'll be here any minute." Isobel tries to hurry them along.

Rebekah walks into Katherine's room and leans against the wall, yawning. "Who will?"

"The Grand Duke," Isobel sighs. "He's been hunting all night."

"Hunting?" Katherine blinks sleep from her eyes. She rubs her eyes again.

"For that girl. The one who lost her slipper at the ball last night. They say he's madly in love with her."

"The Duke is?" Rebekah giggles sleepily.

"Oh, no, no, no. The Prince." Isobel pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs again at the stupidity of her daughters. At the point she mentions the Prince's name; Elena is entering Katherine's room with the breakfast tray.

As she hears the news that the Prince has fallen in love with the mysterious girl he'd met last night, she gasps and her heart begins fluttering with excitement. '_Damon was the Prince!_' her head is screaming at her. "Damon…" the brunette whispers in shock, unaware that she has dropped the tray of food on the floor.

"You clumsy little fool!" Isobel snarls and slaps Elena, who cries out against the torture. The teary-eyed brunette bent on her knees to pick up the mess she has made, but her mind is not on the abuse, but the idea that last night she had been having a civil conversation with _the Prince_. She had shared her deepest secret with him and he hadn't rejected her.

"If the prince is in love with that mysterious girl, why should we even bother getting involved?" Katherine's question is accompanied by another big yawn.

"Listen up!" Isobel yells. "There is still a chance that one of you can get him."

"Really?" Katherine and Rebekah say in unison. "What do you mean?"

"Just know this: no one, not even Prince Damon himself, knows who this girl is," Isobel tells them.

"But we do!" Stefan shouts from the hole in the wall. "It's Elena!" Jeremy covers his mouth with a paw before he can be any louder.

"The glass slipper with her initials on it is the only clue to her identity," Isobel continues as Elena resumes cleaning her mess. "Lord Alaric has been ordered to try the shoe on every woman in Mysteria. And if one girl fits the slipper, that young woman will be taken to live in the palace with Prince Damon."

"In the palace?" Elena thinks in a dreamy voice, her face fixed in a dazed smile. Living with Damon, and Bessie, sounds amazing to the brunette and she sighs.

"In the palace!" Katherine and Rebekah shout in unison. "Elena, get my things and…" Both of them begin giving her a list of things to do and tossing articles of clothing.

"What's wrong with her, mother?" Rebekah asks as Elena just stands there dazed and smiling brightly.

"Wake up, you useless blood bag!" Katherine snaps. "We've got to get ready!" She shoves Elena, which makes her stumble a bit, but her happiness is unfazed.

"Oh yeah, you have to get dressed," she says in an airy tone, "you wouldn't want Lord Alaric to see…" Elena's voice fades after she hands the pile of clothes to Rebekah and walks away with a smile on her face.

"Mother, did you see what happened?" Katherine asks in shock.

"You're not going to let her walk away like that—" Rebekah adds but her mother cuts her off.

"Shh," she presses a finger to her daughters' lips as she makes them follow her down the hall. Elena skips down the hallway, unaware of the vampire's following her, singing the tune that was played at the ball. Isobel's eyes turn dark as she follows her up to her bedroom in the attic.

"What is Isobel going to do?" Stefan asks as he and Jeremy are hiding near the first flight of stairs.

"I don't know but we have to check it out," Jeremy replies quietly as she sneak into their hole again and Isobel begins walking slowly up the stairs to Elena's bedroom.

The mice watch as Isobel walks up the stairs and slid under the door, calling Elena's name.

"Elena, look out!" Jeremy calls. "Behind you!"

"What is it, Jer?" Elena asks. She gasps in horror when she spins around to see Isobel reach her bedroom. Her body shakes but suddenly she feels weightless, as if in a dream. All of a sudden, she gets the strange need to bleed out into a bucket. She wants to feed her loving stepfamily so that they can have a lovely life in the palace with the prince. In the back of her mind, beyond the control of Isobel's compulsion, she knows that this is wrong but she can do nothing about it. As soon as the compulsion snaps, she cries out. "No!" Tears are streaming down her cheeks. "You can't do this to me! Let me out! Please, you can't keep me locked in here forever! Please let me out!" Elena knows she has only minutes before the compulsion kicks in, but it is no use as Isobel steps out of the room and locks the door.

Stefan and Jeremy watch in horror as Elena walks over to the bed in a daze, cuts herself with the scissors on her wrist, and allows the blood to drip down her arm in a bucket. She knows for some reason it has to be slow, but her mind is rebelling against her. "What did she do to Elena?" Stefan asks, his face almost pale in horror as he watches Elena make more gashes on her arm to fill the bucket.

"It's called compulsion and it messes with Elena's mind," Jeremy explains. "They always use it on her to make her scream when they feed on her because they are sadistic monsters."

"Oh," is all Stefan says, blinking as they continue to watch Elena getting weaker and weaker.

* * *

Katherine and Rebekah squeal as they see the royal carriage pull up to the house. Isobel comes back down the stairs with a smirk. "Elena is locked away and we've probably seen the last of her," she smiles at her daughters. When Katherine asks what she's done, she simply laughs and waves her off. "We'll be getting a new maid by sunset tomorrow, one that is much more _compliant_." Katherine and Rebekah simply nod, knowing what their mother's plan is.

"Do you think we'll be able to pass the unknown test?" Rebekah asks, looking worried.

"I just want to get this over with so I can marry the prince," Katherine smiles softly.

"Now, ladies, this is your last chance," Isobel snarls. "Do _not_ ruin it!" She opens the door to see the page and Alaric standing on the steps.

"Announcing the Royal Advisor to King Giuseppe, Lord Alaric," the page, who is actually Damon in disguise, announces.

"I am honored to have you in my home, Lord Alaric," Isobel bows; "I'd like to introduce you to my daughters, Katherine and Rebekah."

"Charmed," Alaric nods.

"Now, we must read the proclamation so that everything is clear," Alaric tells the three women before he actually reads the proclamation out loud. Damon smiles behind his hand as the two sisters react.

"That has to be my slipper!" Rebekah lied.

"No way, I use it all the time," Katherine shakes her head; "it's my slipper!"

The two young vampires begin to chase the page around for the slipper.

"Ladies, your manners," Isobel stops them. She waves to Alaric, "proceed, Lord Alaric." Alaric begins reading once again.

Alaric sighs and presses a hand to his temple, feeling a headache coming on. "Do you need some tea, my Lord," Isobel leads him over to a chair. Damon stands behind him, worried for his friend.

"No, no tea, thank you," Alaric waves her off. "Let's start."

"Of course," Isobel nods. "Rebekah, you go first." Rebekah sits down beside the Duke and he tries to slide the slipper onto her foot.

"I swear, it fit yesterday!" Rebekah shrieks. "Maybe it's magic!"

"There were no traces of magic found in the slipper when our best witch searched it over," Alaric informs her. "Next!"

Upstairs in Elena's room, Stefan and Jeremy help the birds press a wet towel to Elena's forehead. They can do nothing to stop the compulsion until either Elena or Isobel dies. The brunette's eyes flutter shut, even though the blood is only a trickle down her arm. The bucket is half full already and Caroline is trying to get her to eat something. They are all worried that she will die.

Back downstairs, Katherine is furiously trying to push her foot into the slipper. Alaric shakes his head at the three women and motions for Damon that they will be leaving.

"You are the only ladies of the household, I hope, er, I presume?" Alaric stutters, already done with the task. The girl, whoever she is, doesn't want to be found.

Suddenly, Damon tilts his head to the side, concentration on something above them. He pulls Alaric from the house and makes a shushing noise with his finger. As soon as they are in the carriage, but do not ride away, he speaks. "There's a human in that house, a familiar heartbeat," Damon tells him. "It's fading rapidly, as if someone's dying."

Alaric nods and takes the glass slipper from him. Damon picks up a squirming Bessie, who is actually the second secret test. Whoever could speak to Bessie was his mystery girl. "Go to her, Damon," Alaric tells him. Bessie barks at him, urging him with her cries to hurry. Isobel is about to close the door when he pushes past her, knocking her over with the force.

"What are you doing in here, page?" Isobel snarls at him.

"There is another person in your house, a human, and she is dying," Damon growls back. Bessie barks at her and snaps at the elder vampire. Isobel is stunned, but she and her daughters follow Damon up the stairs to Elena's locked door.

The raven haired prince breaks the lock on the door and it slams against the wall as he enters the room. Bessie barks and jumps from his arms, running over to scramble onto the bed next to a familiar brunette. Weakly, the human smiles and runs a pale hand through her fur. "Hi, Bessie," her voice is a rasp. "It's nice to see you again."

Damon pauses at the head of her bed. A bucket half full of blood sits near her arm, which is slowly dripping blood. She knows Bessie, someone who he only introduced to his mysterious lady, and he smiles. It's her, his princess. With a handprint on her cheek, pale skin, and glassy eyes, she's still as beautiful as she was last night at the ball.

"Who is this?" he demands.

"Oh," Isobel smiles at the girl on the bed, licking her lips at the smell of blood. "Pay no attention to _her_."

"It's only Elena," Katherine shakes her head, as if the dying girl on the bed means nothing.

"Our scullery maid..." Rebekah adds.

"From the kitchen."

"It's ridiculous."

"Impossible."

"She's out of her mind."

"Yes, yes," Isobel nods, waving at her as if she were just an annoying fly. "Just an imaginative child!"

Damon growls at the three idiots standing in front of him. "This woman, is the only person to pass the secret test," he spits at them. "So you better be nice to your future queen."

"You're not serious," Isobel shakes her head.

"I'm _dead_ serious," Damon snarls. "Now get out of here before I rip out your hearts." The three scurry from the room.

Elena stirs, feeling something hovering over her. Opening her eyes as much as she can, which isn't that much, she notices familiar blue eyes staring at her, full of concern. "Damon?" she rasps, trying to reach out to him.

"My sweet princess, what happened to you?" he asks, sitting on the bed and pulling her up to rest against his chest. She sags against him, whimpering as she moves her arm.

"Com…pul…sion," she whispers, her heartbeat getting weaker and weaker by the minute. "Damon… am I going to die?"

"Not if I can help it," Damon growls. She watches with wide eyes as he bites into his arm with fangs and holds out his wrist to her. "Elena, you need to trust me."

"You're… you're one of… _them_," she whispers as she wiggles weakly in his hold.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Elena," he says softly. Bessie, who can smell the blood, whines and rubs her nose against Elena's cheek. "See, even Bessie trust me."

"I don't want to die, Damon," Elena cries, tears streaming down her cheeks. She presses her face into his neck and sobs, letting out a shuddering breath. "But I can't stop the bleeding."

"I can stop it, Elena, but you need to _trust_ me."

"I trust you," she whispers and, as soon as she does, he bites into his wrist again where the skin had closed. He presses his wrist to her lips and whispers, "drink," and she does. He watches as color begins to return to her cheeks with each pull of his blood and her eyes grow brighter.

"What did you do?" she asks. "I feel much better now."

"Vampire blood heals, Elena," he tells her.

"Oh," she looks down at where her wound is and immediately reaches for the scissors. "Damon, she compelled me to bleed myself out until I die. I can't stop." He cups her cheeks in his hands and brushes away her tears. Blue locks with brown and Damon's pupils dilate.

"Elena, you will not harm yourself every again," Damon compels her, his more powerful compulsion overcoming her need to stab and bleed herself out. She blinks and looks up at him with a soft smile. "Now, how about coming back to the palace with me?"

"But what about your mystery lady?" Elena asks, not sure if he'd want her if he found out. She's just a pathetic human and he is an extremely powerful vampire.

"Well, that's why I'm asking you," he chuckles, a smirk crossing his visage. "You're my mystery girl, Elena, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

**So this is the final _real_ chapter of CinderElena, but I've decided to write a short epilogue. Next up we have _The Little Mermaid_ but I haven't found a way to change the title yet. Please don't forget to review!**

**P.S. If you haven't voted yet, please do!**


	8. Dreams Do Come True

The next day finds Elena looking at herself in a tri-fold mirror, servants pulling and pinning up the dress. Beside her stands two boys and a girl, all with huge smiles on their faces.

"I can't believe you got Damon to change us back," the blond woman says, her blue eyes flashing happily.

"Well, those vampires had changed us into mice didn't think their spell could be undone," says a dark haired boy with a nod. "I guess they didn't get a strong enough witch."

"Well, whatever it is, I'm grateful," says the blond man with his hands clasped behind his back.

"Guys, I'm just so happy I got us all out of that place," Elena smiles, her face almost glowing with happiness.

"Well, you look amazing," Jeremy, the dark haired male, spoke up. "I can't believe you're getting married to the prince!" The others nod with him and Caroline squeals, going on and on about the dresses and other things that the boys have no interest in.

Elena's dress is an A-line dress that, instead of traditional white, is blood red with a lace flare-out at the bottom. It's a beautiful creation by Jenna, the seamstress and head maid, that is specifically made for the vampire-human wedding of year.

"I agree with Jeremy," says a familiar voice that makes Elena spin around, "you _do_ look amazing… even more beautiful as the dress from the ball." Standing with her arms crossed against the door is Bonnie, her wand in one hand and small pounce of something in the other.

"Bonnie!" Elena squeals and, with not a care for her beautiful wedding dress, jumps off of the stand and rushes at the woman who saved her life. "You're here!"

"Well, the higher ups let me off because you were my first successful case," Bonnie steps into Elena's outstretched arms. "And this is said to be the wedding of the _century_, so I couldn't miss it either way."

"Well, I'm glad you're here," Elena chuckles as the witch leads her to the pedestal where she is supposed to stand for the fitting.

"Me too, Elena," Bonnie smiles, "me too."

* * *

"I now pronounce you husband and wife!" the priest says. Damon and Elena haven't even heard half of the things the man has said because they were too busy staring at each other. Caroline sighs from where she stands as Elena's MOH, her hands almost breaking the flowers in her hand. "You may kiss the bride."

The two lovers surge forward, huge smiles on their faces, and lips clash for the first time. Elena giggles when their noses accidentally bump together and she breaks away, still giggling.

"Well, Princess, what do you want to do now?" Damon asks. The reception party for the wedding is later tonight so that many unspelled vampires can attend at least part of the wedding. So the newlyweds have all day together before the reception.

Elena giggles again, leaning against him with a sigh. "I just wanna go lie down in the garden," she admits sheepishly. "But you're the prince; we should do what you want."

Damon shook his head, blue sapphire eyes boring into her. "This is _our_ day," Damon squeezes her hand reassuringly as they walk back down the aisle. Glaring from the back of the room, Elena's stepfamily is glaring at her with so much hatred that she can almost feel it. "So, we'll go to the garden." She nods and a smile crosses her face as she nuzzles into his shoulder.

"Damon, are you going to Turn me tonight?" she asks, her voice slightly shaky.

The raven haired man looks down at her in concern. "Elena, I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want to do." He looks toward the horizon. "Eventually, I'd love you to be my vampire queen, because I do not want to lose you to old age, but it will be your choice in the end."

She looks down at her shoes, the glass slippers from the ball, and smiles softly. "I want you to turn me tomorrow," her voice is filled with conviction. "I want to be with you forever."

Damon smiles as they reach the garden and he pulls her over to the bench where they met at the ball. "As you wish, my princess," he pulls his wife to his chest, listening to her heart pounding out a soothing rhythm in his ear. Her eyes flutter shut as her head lolls back, a sigh escaping her lips as she realizes that just a few days ago she was the blood bag for her stepfamily and now she is the Princess of Mysteria.

'_My dream has finally come true,_' she thinks as her breathing evens and she actually falls asleep in the garden where she was saved from the horror that was her life.

**So this is the short epilogue for CinderElena! Hoped you liked it. The next Book is The Little Mermaid and I might even start putting out chapters of The Lion King (I've figured out that Trevor is Mufasa because he's pretty much the only guy left!) Please review!**

**P.S. Elena's wedding dress can be found on my profile page.**


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